Braiding stand



H. R. SWETT BRAIDING STAND Oct. 3, 1950 Filed May 14, 1949 Patented Oct. 3 1950 UNITED i STATES PATENT i OFFICE BRAIDING STAND Hinkley R. Swett, Sanford, Maine Application May 14, 1949, serial No. 93,273

6 Claims. 1

This invention relates to a braiding stand, and is particularly useful in braiding such items as rug elements, although it may be used in connection with making other articles.

In making a braid, or similar article, one end of the strands making up the braid are held or anchored in a xed position, and as the operator makes the braid, the braid lengthens; it is de- Sirable that the braid be held taut throughout the braiding operation, and in order to accomplish that effect, it is necessary either for the operator to move back from the point of securement, or to move the point of securement away from the operator.

Heretofore there have not been-satisfactory devices for holding a braid in the braiding operation. It has been customary to tie one end of the braid onto a piece of furniture, or to hold it down by a weight; then as the braid lengthened, the piece of furniture was moved away, or the weight was relocated at another point on the braid.

An object of the present invention is the provision of a braiding stand of novel construction, by the use of which the above noted objection are overcome.

Another object is the provision of a braiding stand having a novel braid holding means by the use of which the braid can be held securely in position, and as the braid lengthens in the braiding operation, it can be fed through the stand so that the braid is then held at a point closer to the place off braiding, whereby it is unnecessary either for the operator to move back from the stand or for the operator to move lthe stand away; the braid can thus always be held taut, and it is retained against movement in the direction toward the operator,

Still another object is the provision of a braiding stand having a novel holding clip for holding a braid.

A further object is the provision of a braiding stand having a novel braid holding means into which a braid, or the strands thereof, can be inserted at any point between the ends of the braid, whereby the braid need not be threaded through from one end.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a braiding stand which is of simple and light construction, and accordingly easily portable, while at the same time can be easily lheld in position by the operator while using it.

Another object is the provision of a braiding stand which is foldable into a compact arrangement, and can be easily and readily set for use.

With these and other objects in View, my invention consists in the construction, arrangement and combination of the various parts of my .device whereby the objects contemplated are attained as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in my claims and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is an isometric view of the braiding stand in setup position;

Figure 2 is an isometric view of the stand in collapsed and folded position;

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Figure 1; and

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4-4 of Figure 1.

Referring now in detail to the drawings the stand is indicated as a whole at I2 and includes an upright standard I4 adapted to rest on the oor. The standard I4 is preferably rectangular in cross sectionbut of course the particular shape is not critical and the present shape may be employed as a convenience in adapting conventionally shaped wood pieces. The whole stand may be made of wood as a matter of convenience, but other materials may be employed. The lower end of the standard I4 is provided with a notch `or groove I6 (Figure 2) spaced upwardly a short distance from the lower end thereof and extending transversely across the standard. The notch or groove I6 is cut only partially through the thickness of the standard as indicated in Figure 4.

Pivoted in the lower end of the standard I4 is a pair of elements I8, together forming a floor engaging member indicated generally by the numeral I 9. The separate elements I8 are positioned one on either side of the standard I4 below the notch or groove I6. The elements I8 are secured to the standard I4 by means of a pin 28, the ends of which are peened over washers 22 tted on the ends of the pin. The member I8 is thus pivotable or swingable about the pin 2B. In the upright or assembled position of the stand, the member I9 is adapted to lie or rest on the floor as indicated in Figure 1.

Pivoted in the outer or swinging ends of the elements I8 is a tread member 24. The member 24 has cut out portions forming a tongue 26 which is tted between the swinging ends of the elements I8 by means of a pin 28.- The pin .28 maybe secured in position similarly to the pin 20, the ends of the pin being peened over washers 30. The purpose of the tongue 2B is for posivtioning between the elements I8 while the main body of the thread member 24 is of substantially the same width as that of the elements I8 in assembled position. At the swinging or outer end 3 of the tread member 24 is a notch 32 forming legs or projections 34. As indicated in Figures 1 and 4, the tread member 24 is swingable to a position wherein the standard I4 is received in the notch 32 and the legs 34 straddle the standard. The legs 34 are provided with notches 36 located in such a position that when the tread member 24 is in the position shown in Figure 1, the notches face downwardly. A pin 38 is fitted in a hole extending transversely through the standard I4 at the point where the swinging end of the tread' member 24 meets the standard, i. e., at a point spaced above the bottom end of the standard I4. The pin 38 has an end extending out each `of opposite sides of the standard and the projecting ends of the pin are received in the notches 36 supporting the swinging end of the tread member 24 against downward movement.

The numeral 46 indicates a supporting member in the form of a transverse piece, provided with a cut out portion or notch 42 opening downwardly out of the bottom surface and extending entirely through the thickness of the piece. The notch 42 forms a reduced intermediate segment 44, and formed in the segment 44 is a vertically extending notch or groove 4B which is cut only partially therethrough, and opens out one of the at sides. The supporting member 40 is fitted to the standard I4 in such a manner that the lower end of the standard I4 below the notch I6 is tted in the notch 42 and the notches 46 and I6 are tted together, and the lower edge of the piece 40 is flush with the lower end of the standard and engages the floor. A bolt 48 is fitted in a hole extending through the standard I4 and supporting member 4S for securing the two together by means of a wing nut U. The supporting member 4U is of substantially the saine thickness as the standard I4 and when the two parts are tted together as above described, they occupy the single thickness or either of the pieces. It will be noted that the supporting member extends transversely to both the standard I4 and the members I9 and 24, serving to support the standard upright.

In the upper end of the standard I4 is a novel gripping means indicated generally at 52. On one side of the upper end of the standard is a groove 54 (Figure 3), cut only partially through the thickness of the standard, forming a thin wall 56 and side legs 58. At the bottom of the groove 54 and communicating therewith is an aperture 6D cut through the thin wall 56 and communicating with the groove at the lower end of the latter.

The aperture 60 is also provided with a cut out portion B2 which opens out the side of the standard in a direction radially of the axis of the aperture.

A gripping finger 64 is pivoted in the groove 54 by means of a pin 66 extending through the legs 58 and through the finger. The pin 66 is disposed substantially above the aperture 60 andactually is closely adj acent the top end of the groove. The upper end of the finger 64 is of reduced thickness, as indicated at 68, and the lower end is tapered as indicated at l0. The finger 64 extends into the projection of the aperture 60 and terminates closely adjacentthe lower surface of the aperture. The tapered surface 'I0 forms a relatively pointed end which serves as a gripping element of the finger.

l Aspring 'l2 is provided for biasing the gripping finger S4 to the position illustrated in Figure 3 which will be referred to as a normal position. The spring l2 is made of spring wire in the form of a U, having a cross piece 14 fitted in a groove in the outer surface of the finger below the pin 66 and having legs 'I6 straddling the finger and extending upwardly between the pin 66 and the thin wall 56. The upper ends of the legs 'I6 extend up to adjacent the top of the groove. The spring 'I2 is so biased or sprung that the lower end of the spring biases the finger 64 counterclockwise or to the position wherein it is entirely within the groove 54. It might be noted that the finger 64 is of a cross-sectional contour similar to the groove 54 so that the finger does not project outwardly of the crosssectiona1 contour of the standard. The numeral 'I8 indicates a braid which m-ay be an element of a braided rug, such as one made of a pluraliti7 of strands.

The strands from which the braid is to be made are inserted in the aperture 6B below the finger 64. When the strands are held and drawn outwardly therefrom in the direction illustrated by the straight portion extending toward the observer in Figure l, the lower end of the finger bites into the strands, and the strands are wedged between the strands and the lower surface of the aperture 66. To insert a braid (or the strands thereof) in the aperture, the spring finger 64 is rotated so that the lower end extends to the left as shown in dotted linesI in Figure 3. This is done by gripping the upper end 68 of the finger and the upper end of the thin wall 56 and squeezing together, swinging the lower end of the nger outwardly. The braid is then inserted, and when the finger is released, the lower end of the finger springs back under the action of the spring 62 and grips the braid. As the operator works on the braid, the tendency is to draw the braid toward the operatoi'. This action wedges the braid tight ly between the finger and the aperture. When a length of braid has been made, it is desired that it be gripped in a new position and for this pur pose the braid is simply drawn through the aperture in the direction away from the observer as illustrated in Figure 3. The finger springs outwardly, permitting the braid to be drawn through the aperture in the manner just referred to.

The operator places his foot on the tread member 24 which secures the stand in its desired position. The downward pressure on the tread member 24 is restrained by the notches 3G fitting over the pin 38. The tread member is thus in locked position and the stand as a whole is readily retained in its set up position.

The cut out portion 62 of the aperture 60 enables the braid to be inserted and removed from the aperture in a convenient manner and it is not necessary to thread the braid through the aperture from one end.

The stand can be readily collapsed and folded into a compact assembly. The tread member 24 is lifted off of the pin 3S; the supporting member 48 can be readily removed from the standard by removing the wing nut 50; then the members I9 and 24 can be moved to the position illustrated in Figure 2 wherein they extend generally longitudinally of and closely adjacent the standard with the supporting member 46 fitted therebetween. The whole assembly then occupies only a, small space and is fitted or folded in a compact arrangement. For all practical purposes all of the members making up the stand are of the same width although the standard is not as wide as the other members, being narrower only to the extent of the thickness of the elements I3. All of the members for that reason make up a compact mass which can be readily packed and contained in a carton.

It will be seen from the foregoing that a, light and readily portable stand has been produced. The stand can be readily effectively anchored in position by the pressure of the foot of the operator on the tread member 40, and the braid can be secured at successively new points as the braid lengthens so that the operator need not move back from the point of securement nor move the point of securement away from him.

While I have herein shown and described a preferred embodiment of my invention, manifestly it is susceptible of modiiication without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. I do not,

therefore, Vwish to be understood as limiting my invention to the precise form herein disclosed, eX- cept as I may be so limited by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a standA of the character disclosed, the combination comprising, an upright standard, means in the upper end of the standard for gripping a braid, a iioor engaging member pivoted on the lower end of the standard and movable to a position extending laterally from the standard, a tread member pivoted on the extended end of said floor engaging member, and means for de-V tachably connecting the extended end of the tread member and the standard at a point above the lower end of the standard.

2. In a stand of the character disclosed, the combination comprising, an upright standard, means in the upper end of the standard for gripping a braid, a floor engaging member pivoted on the lower end of the standard and movable to a position extending laterally from the standard, a projection on the standard spaced upwardly from the lower end, and a tread member pivoted on the extended end of the iioor engaging member, said tread member having a notch adjacent its extended end, the notched end being swingable to a position adjacent said projection, and the notch being adapted to receive said projection, whereby said tread member becomes a rest for the foot of the operator.

:3. In a stand, an upright standard, a floor engaging member pivoted on the lower end of the standard, a tread member pivoted on the swinging end of said floor engaging member, and means for detachably locking the swinging end of the tread member to the standard at a point above the lower end of the standard, and a supporting member removably secured to the lower end of the standard, said supporting member being disposed transverse to the standard and to said door engaging member.

4. In a stand, an upright standard, a floor engaging member pivoted on the lower end of the standard, a tread member pivoted on the swinging end of said floor engaging member, and means for detachably locking the swinging end of the tread member to the standard at a point above the lower end of the standard, and a supporting member removably secured to the lower end of the standard, said supporting member being disposed transversel to the standard and to said oor engaging member, said oor engaging member and tread member being foldable to a position extending longitudinally of and closely adjacent the standard, said standard, door engaging and tread members, and said supporting member all being of similar width whereby the supporting member can be tted with the remaining members in a compact arrangement.

5. In a device of the character disclosed, an upright standard, a pair of oor engaging members pivoted on the lower end of the standard, said floor engaging members being disposed on opposite sides of the standard, a projection on the standard above the lower end thereof, a tread member pivoted in and between the swinging ends of said floor engaging members, the swinging end of said tread member being swingable to a position adjacent the standard, the swinging end of said tread member having a recess adapted to receive said standard and having a notch adapted to receive said projection, and a supporting member removably secured to the lower end of the standard, said supporting member `being disposed transverse to the remaining elements of the stand.

6. In a foldablev and portable braiding stand, the combination comprising, an upright standard adapted to rest on the floor, the upper end of said standard having an aperture therethrough adapted for receiving a braid, a gripping finger pivoted on the standard and having its swinging end extending into the projection of the aperture, said finger being adapted to engage a braid in the aperture and yield lin one direction for permitting the braid to bev drawn through the aperture in that direction and being non-yieldable in the opposite direction for preventing the braid from being drawn through the aperture in that direction, a oor engaging member pivoted on the lower end of the standard, a tread member pivoted in the swinging end of said floor engaging member, means for detachably interlock ing the swinging end of the tread member and.

the standard at a point above the lower end of the standard, and a supporting member removably connected to the lower end of the standard,

said supporting member being disposed transverse to the standard and floor engaging member.

HINKLEY R. SWEIT.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,056,154 Benson Oct. 6, 1936 2,149,518 Frank, Sr. Mar. '7, 1939 2,198,187 Tolley et al Apr. 23, 1940 2,264,936 Dorsa Dec. 2, 1941 

